Sunday, September 29, 2013
Sunday, September 22, 2013
Sunday, September 15, 2013
Comprehensive Internship
EDLD 5399
Capstone Superintendent Internship
Week Three
– Part C of the Final Report: District Improvement and Recommendations
Overview
Welcome to
Week Three of your Capstone Course. This week we are asking you to review your
intern plan, identify any experiences focusing on district or campus
improvement plans or any aspects of an action research plan, and offering
recommendations based on your review of improvement efforts.
During this
week, we will urge you to schedule an appointment with your District Site
Supervisor to discuss his or her Superintendent/Supervisor Internship Summative
Evaluation (SISE), (see Resource Section). In the Weekly Overview for this
course, all students have been informed that their District Site Supervisor
will be asked to complete a SISE for each intern, and by the end of this
course, have a conference reviewing the SISE. We encourage students to use the
results of the SISE to address any recommended areas for improvement in the
students’ Three Year Professional Development Plan.
Learning
Outcome
Understand the importance of improvement initiatives and generating
recommendations based on your internship experiences
Evaluating lessons learned from the Superintendent/Supervisor Internship
Summative Evaluation (SISE)
Performance
Outcomes
Describe
improvement initiatives and use a model for building on lessons learned from
the improvement initiatives using the CARE Model
Writes a
summary of recommendations and lessons learned from experiences with the
District/Campus Improvement initiatives
Post a
reflection on your improvement initiatives and comment on the reflections from
at least two other students on their blogs
Schedule
an appointment with the District Site Supervisor to discuss the intern’s SISE
EDLD 5399
Capstone Superintendent Internship
Rubric
Use the
rubric below to guide your work.
Tasks
Accomplished The evidence suggests that this work is a “Habit of Mind.” The
educator is ready to mentor others in this area. Proficient The evidence
suggests that performance on this work matches that of a strong educator. Needs
Improvement The evidence does not yet make the case for the educator being
proficient at this task. Unacceptable There is no evidence of the candidate
being proficient at this task. Review of District and/or Campus Improvement
Initiatives during internship using the CARE Model
Student
reviews his or her intern plan, identifies any experiences focusing on District
or Campus Improvement Plans, or based on any action research plan, and uses the
CARE Model and identifies three responses to each of the four CARE elements.
CARE:
Concerns –
student lists at least 3 concerns identified from experiences with the
District/Campus Improvement Initiatives or action research;
Affirms –
student affirms or identifies at least 3 actions that must be sustained and
supported to achieve the District/Campus improvement initiatives
Recommendations
– students describes at least 3 recommendations you would make regarding the
District/Campus Improvement plans or action research plans
Evaluate –
Student identifies at least 3 strategies for evaluating the improvement plans
or recommendations
12 Points
Total
Student
reviews his or her intern plan, identifies any experiences focusing on District
or Campus Improvement Plans, or based on any action research plan, and uses the
CARE Model and identifies two responses to each of the four CARE elements.
CARE:
Concerns –
student lists 2 concerns identified from experiences with the District/Campus
Improvement Initiatives or action research;
Affirms –
student affirms or identifies 2 actions that must be sustained and supported to
achieve the District/Campus improvement initiatives
Recommendations
– students describes 2 recommendations you would make regarding the
District/Campus Improvement plans or action research plans
Evaluate –
Student identifies 2 strategies for evaluating the improvement plans or
recommendations
8 Points
Total
Student
reviews his or her intern plan, identifies any experiences focusing on District
or Campus Improvement Plans, or based on any action research plan, and uses the
CARE Model and identifies one response to each of the four CARE elements. CARE:
Concerns –
student lists 1 concern identified from experiences with the District/Campus
Improvement Initiatives or action research;
Affirms –
student affirms or identifies 1 action that must be sustained and supported to
achieve the District/Campus improvement initiatives
Recommendations
– students describes 1 recommendation you would make regarding the
District/Campus Improvement plans or action research plans
Evaluate –
Student identifies 1 strategy for evaluating the improvement plans or
recommendations
4 Points
Total
Student
demonstrates no effort to complete this activity.
0 Points
Summary of
Recommendations
Student writes
at least one page thoroughly
Student
writes less than one page describing
Student
writes less than a half page briefly
Student
demonstrates
EDLD 5399
Capstone Superintendent Internship
and Lessons
Learned from District/Campus Improvement Initiatives
describing
recommendations and lessons learned from experiences with the improvement
initiatives or action research plans.
10 Points
Possible
recommendations
and lessons learned from experiences with the improvement initiatives or action
research plans.
7 Points
Possible
describing
recommendations and lessons learned from experiences with the improvement
initiatives or action research plans.
4- 5 Points
Possible
no effort
to complete this activity.
0 Points
Blog
Comments
Student
follows directions and posts his or her reflection on the Post Assessment and
comments on at least two other students’ assessment relfections.
6 Points
Student
follows directions and posts his or her reflection on the Post Assessment and
comments on one other students’ assessment relfections
4 Points
Student
follows directions and posts his or her reflection on the Post Assessment but
doess not comment on other students’ assessment relfections
2 Points
Student
fails to post reflections to his or her blog.
0 Points
Scheduling a Conference with the District Site Supervisor to review the SISE
Student
schedules an appointment with his or her District/Site Supervisor to review the
Superintendent/Supervisor Internship Summative Evaluation
2 Points
Total
Student
does not complete the task.
0 Points
Assignment Mechanics
Responses
are relevant to course content; no errors in grammar, spelling, or punctuation.
3 Points
Responses
are relevant to course content; few errors in grammar, spelling, or
punctuation.
2 Points
Responses
do not reflect knowledge of course content, lack clarity and depth, and/or
include multiple errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation.
1 Point
Student
does not follow the proper assignment mechanics.
0 Points
EDLD 5399
Capstone Superintendent Internship
Week Three Assignment,
Part 1 – CARE Model Analysis of District/Campus Improvement Initiatives or
Action Research Plans
Please
review your intern plan. In the first course, students were encouraged to
engage in some action research, or participate in district or campus
improvement initiatives. Each of you has had some experiences with such
initiatives or action plans. Please review those experiences and complete the
following analysis:
Concerns –
Review your participation in improvement initiatives or efforts to engage in
action research, and list at least three concerns that you have identified from
these experiences – a concern may be any matter that engages your attention or
interest.
1. The
first improvement initiative that we embarked upon was to increase parental and
community involvement. We scheduled
several different events to encourage participation in the school learning
activities. Although we did have a good
response to some of the events, we still decided that we need more
involvement. We are strategizing on what
events we could schedule to facilitate this process. We have many parents that attend sporting
events, but don’t come to other community events. We are going to re-examine this process and
attempt to improve upon it.
2. We
tried to develop professional development training that is reflective of
deficiencies that we had after examining our school data. We consulted with all stakeholders about what
they felt to be important steps we could take to improve our writing
scores. Although a plan was developed,
we didn’t feel that it adequately addressed all the needs there were. We should have done some type of periodic
evaluation of the program as it progressed.
I think this would have allowed us to make needed adjustments.
3. The district decided on making some security
changes in light of the recent events.
Although we are a very small rural district, we now have larger district
security in place. The district has installed
fencing that encompasses the entire district and card key entry to the
building. We do need a raptor system for
guests that come to visit. I think that
this helps give a piece of mind knowing that those on campus don’t have a
criminal background.
Affirmations
- Review your participation in improvement initiatives or efforts to engage in
action research, and affirm or identify at least 3 actions that must be
sustained and supported to achieve the District/Campus improvement initiatives.
1. I believe the primary goal of any district
should be the success of their students.
This can only be accomplished through dedication to achieving a common
goal. I think if we become complacent
this can only breed mediocrity. We must
constantly re-examine what we are doing and how we hope to achieve our
goals. This can best be observed through
teacher training and development. We
cannot stop our learning process, like we expect our students to continue to
learn.
2. I believe that the safety audit the district
performs annually must be sustained in order to ensure a safe learning environment
for students. All districts should
perform these audits to help identify any potential student hazard that exists.
3. The district sought to improve internal and
external communications. The district
utilizes web pages, facebook, remind101 and other sources to inform the parents
of events at the district. We must be
diligent in updating our system as it becomes necessary. The district also invested in a district wide
intercom and fire and tornado safety system.
This makes it easier to centralize all of our needs. We purchased digital radios for coaches and
administrators to more readily communicate within the district. I think that our ability to communicate
serves to also ensure safety.
Recommendations
- Review your participation in improvement initiatives or efforts to engage in
action research and describe at least 3 recommendations you would make
regarding the District/Campus Improvement plans or action research plans.
1. We want
to become a district that has more of an emphasis on technology based
learning. The district is currently
investing in wifi for the entire school.
We are also seeking grants to help pay for electronic devices that could
facilitate learning in the classroom. We
also have installed smartboards in all classrooms.
2. The
district wants to begin implementing ebooks.
We would like to limit our reliance on hard cover text books. We often have to wait on them to arrive and
students are relegated to sharing or borrowing from other students.
3. The district in conjunction with Navarro
College has implemented a dual credit program.
The school wanted to increase the number of hours of college credit they
had prior to graduation. Thus far the
program has proceeded accordingly.
Evaluate -
Review your participation in improvement initiatives or efforts to engage in
action research and identify at least 3 strategies for evaluating the
improvement plans or recommendations.
1. We held periodic meetings to evaluate the
progress of our professional development program that aimed to improve our
writing scores. We held meetings with
stakeholders and addressed their concerns as it related to the process. We also had department heads meet together to
see what strategies they were using that worked and which ones didn’t.
2. When we decided to improve our school
security, I was the one who did all of the research and had vendors come in and
make presentations to the superintendent and the school board. We evaluated what each company offered in quality
and cost and made a final determination based upon these factors.
3. I worked with various stakeholders to examine
the current early child reading program and decided upon needed changes. We spoke with various vendors and researched
with other districts about their program and we felt that Rowland Reading was
the best suited to address our needs.
EDLD 5399
Capstone Superintendent Internship
Week Three
Assignment, Part 2 – Part C of the Comprehensive Final Report
Describing
Recommendations and District/Campus Improvement Initiative/Action Research
Lessons Learned
Review the
above analysis, and write at least one page thoroughly describing
recommendations and lessons learned from experiences with the improvement
initiatives or action research plans.
During the superintendent internship process I
was able to be involved in numerous campus improvement projects that were not
limited to the academic endeavors of the district. We decided after the previous administration
of the STAAR exam to determine what area of improvement that needed the greatest
focus. This was determined to be our
writing program. We first decided upon a
course of action that would give us the greatest results. We developed a comprehensive professional
plan that allowed us to do assessments and evaluations during the program. We also visited other districts that had good
results with their writing program. The
plan included all stakeholders and incorporated the suggestions of all of the
stakeholders in the development process.
The district also implemented a technology
learning plan into the curriculum this year. The plan was initiated with the
purchase of Microsoft surface tablets for students in grades 4th -6th. We also installed district wide wifi. We intended to use the technology to enhance
the learning process of our students. We
realize that to keep up with the way that students learn, we must change the
way that we reach these students. The
district also recently installed interactive smartboards in every
classroom. Technology is the future of
education and we want students in rural America to have the same advantages as
those in suburbs.
We also initiated a school security upgrade. After recent events in the news we realized
that although we are isolated, we are not immune from potential threats. We installed door request access on all
buildings. Guests must be granted access
through request. This allows us to
determine who gains entry to the buildings.
We also installed district wide fencing.
The entire district is now encased in chain link fencing with locks on
each gate. We also upgraded our security
cameras in each building. We hope that
all of these upgrades will help to ensure a safer learning environment.
Blog
Follow-Up: Be sure to post your above reflection on your Recommendations and
Lessons Learned to your blog, and read and comment on at least two other
students’ assessment reflections.
EDLD 5399
Capstone Superintendent Internship
Week Three
Assignment, Part 3 - Scheduling a Conference with the District Site Supervisor
to review the SISE
Please
schedule a conference with your District Site Supervisor between now and Week 5
to review the Supervisor’s SISE (Superintendent/Supervisor Internship Summative
Evaluation). To confirm this scheduled conference, please describe your efforts
below – this may include “sending an email request for a scheduled conference,
visiting with the supervisor to schedule a conference, or any other efforts
describing your efforts to schedule this conference.”
EDLD 5399
Capstone Superintendent Internship
I was able
to have continual interaction with my site superintendent throughout the
process and scheduled a meeting on Monday September 16th to review
the SISE. We spoke in the hallway and
scheduled the meeting.
Reminder
regarding the parts of your Comprehensive Final Report
Part A of
the Comprehensive Final Report: Career and Leadership Goals
Week Two –
Part B of the Comprehensive Final Report: Summarizing Leadership Experiences in
each of the SBEC Superintendent Competencies
Week Three
– Part C of the Final Report: District Improvement and Recommendations
Week Four –
Part D of the Final Report: Reflections on Reflective Leadership
Week Five –
Part E of the Final Report: Three Year Professional Development Plan
The
Educational Leadership faculty has developed a template for each candidate to
develop a three year professional development plan. Based on the lessons
learned during their internship, the candidates are asked to complete the
following Template:
Goal
TExES
Competency
and Domain
Objective
(What do
you want to improve?)
Course
Work/Book/
Workshops
(How do you
want to improve?)
Mentor
Professional
Support
(Who will
help you improve?)
Date of
Completion
Evaluations
(How will
you know you have improved?)
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